Dispenser for a rolled material

ABSTRACT

A dispenser for a material on a roll, the dispenser having a front section connected to a back section. The front section includes a top wall and a front wall, with the top wall having a cutter such as a slide cutter or a blade, for cutting the material, and a dispenser slot for dispensing the material. The back section includes a bottom wall and a rear wall. The front and back sections are connected where the bottom wall meet the front wall such that the front and back sections can be in an open position or a closed position. A roll is place in the dispenser, in some versions on roll containment mounts.

REFERENCE TO PRIOR APPLICATIONS

This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No.60/824,739, filed on Sep. 6, 2006, which is incorporated by referenceherein in its entirety.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates generally to dispensing plastic wrapand/or similar roll materials from an improved dispensing device.

RELATED ART

Plastic wrap, wax paper, parchment paper, aluminum foil, and relatedpackaging and sealing material are typically manufactured in elongatedsheets mounted on a roll. Such material is usually dispensed by pullinga desired length from the roll, and cutting the material against ahacksaw type blade or similar knife edge. Traditional dispensers simplycontain the material roll within a cardboard boxlike structure, andmount a wrap-width blade on an exposed edge of one wall of the box. Suchdispensers are usually weak and prone to deterioration, and additionallyexpose the user's hands to cuts against the exposed blade.

Other, more complicated dispensers use a mechanical system, typicallyspring-actuated, to dispense a desired length of wrap, and incorporate aguard or other device to shield the user's hands from the cutting blade.These dispensers are prone to breakage of the mechanism, and jamming ofthe wrap itself in the dispenser. Additionally, most of these dispensingsystems have been designed to be mounted on a wall or under a shelf inorder to give the user easy access to the material.

SUMMARY

In one aspect, the present invention provides a dispenser for a materialon a roll, the dispenser comprising top, bottom, front and rear walls,and left and right side walls. The top and front walls form a frontsection, and the rear and bottom walls form a back section. In someversions, the front and back sections are hingedly connected togetherwhere the bottom and front walls meet to bring the front and backsections into a closed position when the top and rear walls are broughttogether, and into an open position when the top and rear walls aremoved apart. The front and back sections each include a left side wallsection and a right side wall section, the left side wall sectionsforming the left side wall and the right side wall sections forming theright side wall when the front and back sections are in a closedposition. The top wall includes a dispensing slot for dispensing thematerial and a cutting device for cutting the material.

In other embodiments, the dispenser can include mounts on the front andback section for holding and supporting the rolled material in thedispenser.

Other objects, features, embodiments and advantages of the presentinvention will become apparent from the following description whenconsidered in connection with the accompanying figures. It is to beexpressly understood, however, that each of the figures is provided forpurpose of illustration and description only and is not intended as adefinition of the limits of the present invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a front perspective view of a dispenser;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of an open dispenser;

FIG. 3 is an exploded view of a dispenser;

FIG. 4 is a perspective side view showing the profile of a dispenser;

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of an open dispenser holding a materialroll;

FIG. 6 is an end perspective view of a dispenser;

FIG. 7 is a top perspective view of a dispenser;

FIG. 8 is a top view of an open dispenser;

FIG. 9 is a top view of an open dispenser and a cylinder;

FIG. 10 is a perspective view of an open dispenser loaded with amaterial roll on a cylinder;

FIG. 11 is a perspective view of a roll containment mount and a lipdetail on a back section of a dispenser;

FIG. 12 is a top view of the inside of a front section;

FIG. 13 is a bottom view of the bottom of a dispenser; and

FIG. 14 is a bottom perspective view of a dispenser.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

A material dispenser in accordance with the present invention provides aunitary container and dispensing system for materials like plastic wrap,aluminum foil, parchment paper or other similar type materials that arewould around. The dispenser can have a design that allows the user todispense material from a counter top, or from a hand-held position. Someembodiments of the dispenser can be easily stored within standardkitchen drawers. The device can incorporate a slide cutter known in theart for cutting plastic wrap and other materials, or a traditionalhack-saw blade or other type of cutting blade that is sufficient forcutting a desired roll material.

Referring to FIGS. 1, 2, 3 and 4, in one embodiment, the dispenser 20comprises a generally elongated structure having a front section 22, aback section 24, and left and right side walls (only the right side wall26 is shown in FIG. 1). The front section comprises a top wall 28 andfront wall 30 of the dispenser, while the back section comprises abottom wall 32 and rear wall 34 of the dispenser. As shown in FIG. 2,the front and back sections are connected by hinges 36 to allow thefront and back sections to open up and separate from each other along atop edge of the dispenser. Referring to FIGS. 2 and 4, each side wall iscomprised of two side wall sections, a front side wall section 38associated with the front section 22, and a back side wall section 40associated with the back section 24.

Referring to FIG. 2, the front section can include a recessed cuttingslot 42, located near the top edge of the front section, into which ameans for cutting a roll material, in this case a slide cutter 44, isinserted. The slide cutter can be any slide cutter known in the art forcutting roll materials that can be accommodated within the cutting slot.The dispenser can also be modified to incorporate a metal type cuttingblade instead of a cutting slot with a slide cutter. Additionally, thefront section can include one or more, and preferably two, recessedfinger slots 46 located at the left and/or right sides of the top of thefront section and adjacent to the cutting slot, as shown in FIGS. 1 and2, which allows the user access to the exposed sides of roll material.

Referring to FIG. 1, the top rear edge of the front section has a cutoutwhich, when the front and back sections are closed together, forms amaterial slot (or “dispensing slot”) 48. This slot extends along thewidth of the dispenser from left to right side walls across the top edgeof the front section for easy loading of roll material. The materialslot is of a length less than the width of the recessed cutting slot,and is located adjacent and substantially parallel to the cutting slotand the finger slots. This allows material to be dispensed with controlwhen the dispenser is closed.

The front section is connected to the base of the back section in twoplaces by hinges 36, which are equally spaced and located on left andright sides of the inside front section, as shown in FIG. 2. For eachhinge, both the front and back sections include a hinge detail in theform of a hinge section 50 which cooperates to create the complete hingeonce the front and back sections are connected to form the dispenser, asshown in FIG. 3. Other types of hinges or connectors, such as tape orvelcro, can be used as long as the front and back sections can open andclose.

Referring to FIGS. 2 and 3, the front section includes two small magnets52 that can be located at the inside lip detail (or “tab”) 54 near theleft and right side wall sections adjacent to the material dispenserslot 48. The back section also includes two small magnets 56 located onthe lower inside lip detail (or “tab”) 58 near the left and right sidewall sections, which are adjacent to magnets located on front sectionwhen the dispenser is closed. When the dispenser is closed, each frontsection magnet cooperates by magnetic attraction with its correspondingback section magnet to connect the back and front sections together.Thus, the combination of the magnet locations allows the dispenser tosecurely close into a locking position when both front and back sectionsare closed together. The magnets also allow both sections to beseparated causing the dispenser to be in an open position for loadingand reloading of said materials without buttons or latches commonlyfound on other dispenser type products.

In this embodiment, the front of the dispenser is at a greater heightthan the rear of the dispenser when viewed in profile in FIG. 4, withthe dispenser front curving backwards toward the rear to produce thecam-like profile. The overall shape of this embodiment distributes theweight of a material roll toward the rear of the dispenser, enhancingstability and ease of use.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 5, a material roll can be inserted into the backsection and used for dispensing without the need for additionalsupporting devices. In this case, the material roll is supported by theoverall shape of the back section and by ribs 60 that line the backsection. The ribs also provide structural stability to the dispenser.

In another embodiment, the parts of the dispenser are generally the sameas in the above-described embodiments, but the dispenser is of a moregenerally rectangular shape, as shown in FIGS. 6 and 7. The dispensercomprises a front section 62 and a back section 64. The front sectioncomprises a top 66, a front wall 68, and left and right side wallsections 70, and the back section comprises a bottom, rear wall, andleft and right side wall sections 72. Referring to FIG. 8, the front andback sections are connected by hinges 74, and magnets are arranged ineach section to secure the dispenser in a closed position. As shown inFIG. 7, the dispenser includes a slide cutter 76, a dispenser slot 78,and finger slots 80.

In this embodiment, means for supporting a material roll are included.The supporting means in this case are roll containment mounts 82, shownin FIGS. 8, 9 and 10, that are formed inside of and adjacent to both theleft and right back side wall sections within the base or bottom area ofthe back section. Referring to FIG. 9, the mounts serve to hold asuitably sized cylinder 84, such as a tubing or pipe, that runs alongthe width of the dispenser. In turn, the cylinder supports and suspendsa material roll within the dispenser, as shown in FIG. 10. The cylindercan be made of any material, such as PVC, metal, cardboard, and thelike, so long as the cylinder can support and suspend the material roll.Referring to FIGS. 8 and 11, the mounts each include a V or U-shapednotch 86 in which an end of a cylinder can rest.

As shown in FIG. 12, the front section also has supporting means in theform of mounts 88 formed adjacent to the front side wall sections withinthe top wall area of the front section. The front section mounts aresimilar in shape to the mounts shown in FIG. 11, and include front V orU-shaped containment notches which, when the front and back sectionsclose, are spaced from and cooperate with the notches of the backsection mounts to hold the ends of a cylinder or material roll looselyin position, thus allowing the roll to rotate within the dispenser. Thefront wall of the front section is spaced from the roll of materialcontained within the dispenser to allow the material to roll freelywithout restriction.

Although the dispenser shown in FIG. 5 does not include mounts forsupporting a material roll, it should be understood that otherembodiments of this dispenser can include roll containment mounts in theback section, and corresponding mounts in the front section. The mountscan be similar to those shown in FIGS. 8, 9, 10 and 11, and can belocated inside of and adjacent to both the left and right side wallsections of the back section, and the left and right side wall sectionsof the front section, similar to the mounts shown in FIGS. 8, 9, 10 and12.

Although V or U-shaped mounts are shown in the figures, other shapes arepossible as long as the mounts can support a cylinder or a material rollfor dispensing. Similarly, any other support structure can substitutefor the mounts as long a material roll can be dispensed.

In practice, the dispenser can include an over molded rubber footing orother type of footing attached to the bottom of the dispenser forsupport. For example, in the embodiment shown in FIG. 3, rubber discs 90are attached as the footing. Rubber footings 92 are also shown in FIG.13, which shows a bottom view of an embodiment of the dispenser.

In some cases, the dispenser can be constructed by common manufacturingpractices, such as injection molding, and formed using polymers such aspolycarbonate, ABS, or like materials. In other cases, the dispenser canbe made of stainless steel or any other material that providessufficient support and stability for dispenser function. Combinations ofplastic, metal and/or other materials are also contemplated.

Various parts of a dispenser can be prepared as single items, or can beprepared from component parts. For example, a back section can be madeas one piece, i.e., by injection molding. Alternatively, as shown inFIG. 3, the back section can be made as separate component parts, thenconnected together to form the entire back section. In the embodimentshown in FIG. 3, the component parts are connected by screws 92. Inother embodiments, the component parts can be designed to press-fit intoplace using materials and technology well known in the field. Similarly,while hinge pins 94 are used to form a complete hinge in the embodimentof FIG. 3, in other embodiment, a hinge can be formed by press-fittingtogether hinge components.

In certain embodiments, the dispenser can also include variousdecorative components, such as the front plate 96 and top plate 98 whichare attached to the front section in FIG. 3. The back section caninclude a recessed detail located on the top center. A small name plateor sticker made of vinyl, acrylic or like materials can be secured intothis recessed area for branding purposes. In addition, the name plate orsticker can provide a cling feature to said material which helps keepthe material in a ready position on the top portion of the back section,thus preventing the material edge from retracting back into the materialdispensing unit.

Referring to FIG. 11, both front and back sections can each include asmall lip 100 located near the edge or parting line of both sections andextending along the length of the edge. The lips allow both sections tonest with each other as the dispenser is put into a closed position.Thus, when closed, the front section lip rests upon the back section lipwhich is designed with a slightly lower level than the front section lipto provide a fit with both sections.

Referring to FIG. 14, this figure shows a bottom 102 of a dispenser inaccordance with the present invention.

In use, dispenser sections are manually opened and separated. A roll ofmaterial is placed over a cylinder and placed into the roll supportV-shaped notches, if any, located inside the dispenser. The leading edgeof the wrap is pulled out over the top of the back section and laid torest while the user closes both the front and back sections. The frontand back sections when closed engage each other at said lip details toform the material slot which serves to hold the wrap in a controlleddispensing position. The material is then pulled through the materialslot and toward the front section, towards the user, over the cuttingslot to a ready position.

To dispense a length of wrap, the user can reach a forefinger into eachof the left and right forger slots located on the top of the frontsection to grasp the exposed sides of the material, and lift and pullthe material up and away from the dispenser. The user's hands areprotected from being cut if the dispenser employs a slide cutter to cutthe materials. When a desired length of material has been pulled fromthe dispenser, the user lets the wrap rest down against the slide cutterand the user then moves the cutting button back and forth to make thefinal cut. In preferred embodiments, the dispenser is constructed suchthat the user does not need to hold or support the dispenser whilepulling material up and away from the dispenser.

Although the present invention and its advantages have been described indetail, it should be understood that various changes, substitutions andalterations can be made herein without departing from the spirit andscope of the invention. Moreover, the scope of the present applicationis not intended to be limited to the particular embodiments of theprocess, machine, means, methods and/or steps described in thespecification. As one of ordinary skill in the art will readilyappreciate from the disclosure of the present invention, processes,machines, means, methods, or steps, presently existing or later to bedeveloped that perform substantially the same function or achievesubstantially the same result as the corresponding embodiments describedherein may be utilized according to the present invention. Accordingly,the invention is intended to include within its scope such processes,machines, means, methods, or steps.

1. A dispenser for a material on a roll, the dispenser comprising top,bottom, front and rear walls, and left and right side walls, wherein a)the top and front walls form a front section, and the rear and bottomwalls form a back section, b) the front and back sections are hingedlyconnected together where the bottom and front walls meet to bring thefront and back sections into a closed position when the top and rearwalls are brought together, and into an open position when the top andrear walls are moved apart, c) the front and back sections each includea left side wall section and a right side wall section, the left sidewall sections forming the left side wall and the right side wallsections forming the right side wall when the front and back sectionsare in a closed position, and d) the top wall includes a dispensing slotfor dispensing the material and a cutting device for cutting thematerial.
 2. The dispenser of claim 1, further including mounts on thefront and back sections for holding a material on a roll within thedispenser.